adventure

I am a big fan of the Resident Evil series - and this is by far the best of the lot. Since I tend not to play well with others - and most of my friends do not understand me entering the console gaming world so late in life - I am reviewing the single player/off-line mode only. The scenes and character renditions are the best I have seen in the series...and some of the cut scenes are spectacular: creepy - yet strangely beautiful - at the same time. The characters (you can choose 1 of 8) are well-drawn (some, dare I say, are even kind of sexy!) and have distinctive personalities and "special" skills - which give the game enormous replay value. The gameplay is very different from most of the other RE games - in that it is less linear - and allows for a much more chaotic feel (as both you, and other non-zombied, AI characters (of whom you can have limited interactions & can share/exchange items) are frantically trying to escape the flesh-munching hordes. Another plus, is that you must reach a level's end - not only without getting eaten - but before your blood is overtaken by the zombie virus which is in your system!!! Also Outbreak has, in my opinion, a much more tense, panic-inducing feel about it, making the terror far more palpable.

Now for the reason for only 4 stars: As this game is difficult - even on the "easy" setting - the designers needed to allow a player the ability to save more often (heck, once would have even been nice!!!!!) - not just as a "temporary", one-time basis - (ie: you can reload a temporary save - but then the save is gone). After having to replay an entire level over several times - even when you were minutes from completion - can make a sane man want to take a bite out of his cat (art imitating life?)!!! Also the load times (even when reentering a door) seems to take forever. Lastly is the limited, repetitive chatter by some of the AI characters that "follow you" - which becomes increasingly annoying as time goes by. At first it is kind of endearing and entertaining...but after a while, hearing the same phrases over and over and over - kind of make you want to turn your weapon on them (if it were possible) instead of the zombies - or at the very least lock them out of the room to become zombie side dishes. Once their screaming dies down you can finally enjoy the blissful silence!

(...).

Five scenarios and eight characters means a lot of replay value. The game is excellent. The graphics are flawless, however, the controls take some getting used to. Also, some of the zombie sounds are recycled from Resident Evil games of the 90's. You'd think they'd be able to afford to record new sounds by now! And the virus meter is very annoying. The first scenario, Outbreak, takes place on the streets of Raccoon city, reminiscent of Resident Evil 2 and 3. The only problem with it is that there is seemingly an endless supply of zombies, who can open doors. The second scenario, Below Freezing Point, is a lot of fun, as it takes place in Umbrella's secret lab from Resident Evil 2 and 0. The third scenario, The Hive, takes place in a hospital, I think the same one from Resident Evil 3. The only problem with this scenario is that there's a monster that always follows you around, and it reminded me of the Leech Monster from Resident Evil 0. The fourth scenario, Hellfire, takes place in a burning hotel, and is very cool, since it features the return of the Lickers. The fifth and final scenario is called Decisions, Decisions. It takes place at Raccoon University, and has many routes to explore. I haven't played it online, so I can't comment on that aspect of it. This game is an excellent mix of old and new, and a must-have.

I have been a big fan of the Resident Evil games since the beginning. This is by far the worst RE game to date. The other characters that you interact with are extremely annoying. They constantly repeat the same few words over and over again. They also seem to die rather quickly, even against weak enemies like the zombies. Moving from room to room will also make you angry. You can take a nap in the amount of time from when you open the door to a room and actually step in it. Maybe it's just me, but the controls seem to have become worse too. The kick and tackle commands are next to useless, and most of the camera angles just plain suck. I am very disappointed with this game. Horrible job on this one Capcom. I wish I could give it 0 stars.